Privacy Policy

Effective date: September 5, 2026 · Applies to QR Handler 1.3.2 and later on iOS and Android

The short version: QR Handler runs no servers and holds no account data. Everything you scan or create stays on your device. The only data collection in the app comes from the Google AdMob advertising SDK described below, and you can limit it.

QR Handler ("the app") is published by Chinese Powered ("we", "us"). This policy explains what data the app touches, what stays on your device, and which third party is involved.

Data stored on your device only

Your scan history, created codes, labels, favorites and settings are saved in the app's local storage on your device. We never see them; nothing is uploaded by us. Deleting the app deletes this data, and "Clear all data" in Settings removes it while keeping the app. (Local data may be included in your phone's own device backups, which follow your Apple or Google backup settings.)

The app has no accounts, no sign-in, and no analytics SDK. We do not track how you use it.

Camera

The camera is used for one thing: reading QR codes and barcodes on the Scan tab. Frames are analysed on the device in real time; no photos or video are captured, stored or uploaded. Camera access is requested the first time you open the Scan tab and can be revoked in system settings — scanning from a photo still works without it.

Photos

"Photo" on the Scan tab opens the system photo picker so you can scan a code from a saved image or screenshot; only the image you pick is read, on the device. "Save" on a created code writes the QR image to your photo library. The app never browses your library on its own.

Contacts and calendar

When you scan a contact card (vCard) or a calendar event, the app offers "Add Contact" / "Add to Calendar". Only if you tap it does the app ask for the matching permission and write that single entry to your device's contacts or calendar. The app never reads your existing contacts or events.

Clipboard

"Paste" on the Scan tab reads the clipboard once, when you tap it, to decode a link or text you copied elsewhere. The app never reads the clipboard in the background. Copy actions write to the clipboard only when you tap them.

Export

"Export history" in Settings builds a JSON file of your scans and created codes and hands it to the system share sheet. Where it goes (Files, AirDrop, mail, a cloud drive) is your choice; the app itself sends it nowhere.

Advertising (Google AdMob)

QR Handler is free and supported by ads served by Google AdMob: a small banner at the top of the app and an occasional full-screen ad that only appears after you already have your result. When an ad is requested, Google's SDK may collect device information such as advertising identifiers, IP address, approximate location derived from it, and ad-interaction data, used for ad delivery, measurement and fraud prevention.

In the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, the app shows Google's consent form before any ad is requested, and ads are only served according to the choices you make there. You can review or change those choices at any time under Settings › "Ad privacy options" inside the app.
On iOS, the app asks for App Tracking Transparency permission after your first scan or created code. Ads use your device's advertising identifier only if you allow it there (and, where applicable, consented above); otherwise they are non-personalized. You can change your mind any time in Settings › Privacy & Security › Tracking.
On Android, you can reset or delete your advertising ID and opt out of ad personalization in Settings › Google › Ads.
Details: Google's Privacy Policy and how Google uses data in AdMob.

Links you open

Scanned links are shown in full before anything opens, and open only when you tap. The safety check under a link (the real site, http warnings, look-alike and shortened-link alerts) runs entirely on the device. Link types that could act on your device are blocked by the app. Once a link opens in your browser or another app, that app's privacy policy applies.

Two actions contact the internet, and only when you tap them: "Reveal destination" on a shortened link asks that link's server where it leads, so the link's operator sees a request from your device exactly as if you had opened it in a browser; and "Search product" on a retail barcode opens a web search for the barcode number in your browser.

Children

QR Handler is a general-audience utility and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children.

Your choices

Ad personalization: the tracking / advertising-ID settings on your device (see above).
Camera, photos, contacts, calendar: grant or revoke each permission in system settings; the related feature simply stays off.
Scan history: turn off "Auto-save scans" in Settings to keep nothing, delete single items, or "Clear all data".
Everything: delete the app.

Changes

If a future version changes any of the above, this policy will be updated before that version ships, with the date above revised.

Contact

Questions or requests: [email protected]